Y’all this Cherries Jubilee is straight fire… literally. Cherries get all caramelized with sugar turning into the perfect dessert topping. Drizzle this on vanilla ice cream or New York cheesecake and serve it up when you wanna get all fancy. This cherries jubilee recipe is straight from Watermelon and Red Birds: A Cookbook for Juneteenth and Black Celebrations.
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How to Make Cherries Jubilee
Step 1: Start the Sauce
- Heat up the tangerine juice and butter over medium heat. Do try to speed this process up by cranking up the heat. Have a little patience y’all.
- Once the butter is melted, add the sugar, salt, and cornstarch. Keep that wrist whisking until everything is nice and smooth.
Step 2: Add in Cherries and Light them Up!
- Add the cherries and stir to combine. Bring the cherries to a simmer and let them cook for a few minutes. Stick close by and stir occasionally! You don’t want the syrup to reduce too much and burn the cherries.
- Now, it’s time to flambé. Pour the whisky over the cherries and carefully ignite it with a long nosed lighter or long match. Let the flame die out naturally. The fire burns off quickly and leaves you with a beautiful, caramelized, intense sauce.
PRO TIP: If flambéing indoors, check for anything that could catch fire overhead or on the sides of the stove. Don’t stand too close to the pan or lean over it as you add the liquor and be sure to let the flame die out naturally!
Cherries Jubilee Recipe
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 scoops vanilla ice cream
- 4 tbsp tangerine zest from 2 tangerines
- 1/2 cup tangerine juice from same 2 tangerines
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter 1/2 stick
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 lb fresh Bing cherries pitted
- 1/3 cup bourbon or American whiskey
Instructions
- Scoop the ice cream into individual bowls or one large serving bowl and freeze until ready to serve.
- Zest and juice the tangerines; set the zest aside and pour the juice into a large saucepan. Add the butter and place the pot over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the sugar, salt, and cornstarch and whisk until smooth.
- Add the cherries and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then cook 2 to 3 minutes, until the cherries have softened slightly and the sauce is thickened.
- If cooking indoors, check for anything that could catch fire overhead or off to the sides of the stove. If cooking outdoors, make sure you have a place to put the hot pan.
- Pour the whisky over the cherries and carefully ignite it with a long nosed lighter or long match. Let the flame die out naturally.
- Immediately pour the cherries and sauce into the bowls over the ice cream. Finish with the tangerine zest.
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe Tips
- Use the Best Cherries and Prep Well: Fresh ripe cherries are your best bet for this cherry jubilee recipe. The cherries are the main event so don’t skimp here. They should be deep in color, plump and firm. When prepping them to cook, make sure you remove as much moisture from them as possible. Pat them dry with paper towels so the sauce isn’t diluted with too much liquid.
- Adjust Sweetness: Cherries vary in their sweetness so the sugar in this recipe is really a guide. Taste your sauce and adjust based on your preference. Do you boo!
- Watch your Flambé: Make sure folks stand a safe distance away when you get ready to light it up. Make sure you also keep a lid nearby just in case you gotta extinguish some flames. Tilt the pan away from you for safety as well when you light with a long match or grill lighter.
- Don’t Overcook: You want the cherry shape to stay intact so don’t overcook boos. The more you cook, the mushier they will become.
Ingredient Notes
- Cherries: If you can’t get the bing cherries, you can definitely grab some Rainer or Lambert cherries. The flavor might be a bit different. You can also grab frozen cherries as well. Just make sure you thaw them completely and drain all liquid before using in the cherry sauce recipe.
- Alcohol: No bourbon or whiskey lying around? Grab some rum, brandy or even an orange liqueur. You can even sub out alcohol all together and go with a cherry or apple juice. You will just skip the flambe effect.
- Cornstarch: Grab some tapioca starch, arrowroot powder or flour to help thicken your sauce when cornstarch isn’t around.
- Citrus: Swap out the tangerines for oranges, lemons or even limes.
Serving Suggestions
- Ice Cream: The classic serve is definitely vanilla ice cream but you can really have some fun by serving it warm over some coffee ice cream, corn ice cream or lemon sorbet.
- Cake: Y’all I love to serve this jammy cherry sauce over a slice of buttery pound cake! Give me some cherries jubilee drizzled over cream cheese pound cake or sour cream pound cake any day boos. The cakes are dense enough to soak up the sauce and also mild enough to let the cherries shine.
- Breakfast: Serve this on top of some bomb fluffy pancakes, buttermilk waffles or something a bit different and Southern like hoe cakes.
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Recipe Help
If the thought makes you nervous, you don’t have to flambé cherries jubilee. Just cook until the cherries soften and the sauce is thick. It will still be delicious but you won’t have the caramelized flavor this process gives.
Yep for sure boos! You can also grab frozen cherries as well. Just make sure you thaw them completely and drain all the liquid before using in the cherry sauce recipe.
Yep for sure! You can just make the recipe as is then store in the fridge. When you are ready to serve, you can reheat gently on the stove or even in the microwave to warm through. Just be careful not to overcook so the cherries don’t get mushy.
Yep, you should definitely use pitted cherries in this sauce. Either grab them already pitted for convenience or you can use a cherry pitter. If you don’t have a pitter, simply slice a cherry in half and remove the pit with a small spoon.
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I made this with dark cherries and vegan butter and ice cream. I know that is a lot of modifications, but I wanted to let you know that it turned out amazing!
Every time i visit your site to check new recipes. Every time you surprise me. That’s just a delicious recipe with cherries. Thanks again for your wonderful recipes.
Thanks for the cherries jubilee recipe.
Thanks for the cherries jubilee recipe. Best regards!
http://www.fooddoz.com
I’m obsessed with all things cherry right now, so I can’t wait to try this Cherries Jubilee!
I have never had cherries jubilee but this looks so gorgeous! We are having friends over this weekend so this will be dessert.
The cherry dessert came out deliciously! Super easy to make! thanks for the recipe.
This is exactly what I’m going to make with all the cherries currently in my fridge. Cherries jubilee is the perfect summertime dessert and it’s going to go great with our barbecue on Friday.
MMMM….these were amazing! Great way to use up some leftover cherries I had–kids LOVED it over ice cream!!